Goro Ijuin

Goro Ijuin (29 September 1852-13 January 1921) was a Marshal Admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Boshin War, the Taiwan Expedition of 1874, the Satsuma Rebellion, the First Sino-Japanese War, and the Russo-Japanese War.

Biography
Goro Ijuin was born in Kagoshima, Satsuma Domain, Japan in 1852, and he served as a foot soldier during the Boshin War. In 1871, he entered the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy, and he participated in the Taiwan Expedition of 1874, the Ganghwa Island incident off Korea in 1875, and the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877. In 1883, he was commissioned a sub-lieutenant after studying in the United Kingdom, and he became a captain in 1894. During the First Sino-Japanese War, he served as a staff officer at the IJN headquarters. In 1899, he was promoted to Rear Admiral, and he worked to develop the alliance with Britain from behind the scene. He served as Vice-Chief of the Navy General Staff during the Russo-Japanese War, and he served as Chief of the Navy General Staff from 1909 to 1914. In 1910, he rose to the rank of Admiral, and he rose to the rank of Marshal Admiral in 1915; he had risen through these ranks, despite never having commanded a ship. His son Matsuji Ijuin would be one of the Japanese commanders at the 1944 Battle of Saipan.